| VA: - Kent 30 - Best Of Kent Norther 1982-2012 This CD is a look at the Kent label’s Northern Soul history, heritage and future. There’s more to Kent than just Northern Soul, but that’s how we started in 1982 when Mary Love’s ‘You Turned My Bitter Into Sweet’ kicked off the “For Dancers Only” vinyl album. We covered the ballad side recently on “Deep Shadows: The Best Of Kent Ballads” CDKEND 342. The “For Dancers Only” LP gets a nod with Gene & Gary’s duet of Danny Monday’s ‘Baby Without You’, here on CD for the first time. There is a host of exclusives, several not issued in any format before: Alexander Patton’s ‘True Love (Is In The Heart)’ will open traditional Northern fans’ eyes and ears the most, being from the same session and of a similar feel to his classic ‘A Lil Lovin’ Sometimes’, and Marva Holiday’s ‘Rising Higher’ is a fabulous Sherlie Matthews’ song that will be admired by progressive Northern fans. Modern soul has been a part of the Kent landscape since 1984’s “Moving On Up” album. We celebrate that branch of our music with Darrow Fletcher’s ‘No Limit’ and the Paramount Four’s anthemic ‘Sorry Ain’t The Word’, both debuting on CD. 70s soul fans may well buy the CD for these two alone. Our forthcoming Pied Piper spring range is launched with the original alternate take of Lorraine Chandler’s 60s Detroit opus ‘You Only Live Twice’; the song that gave birth to Yvonne Baker’s ‘You Didn’t Say A Word’. From the same stable comes the Pied Piper Players (aka Motown’s Funk Brothers) on ‘Ooh It Hurts Me’, a massive 60s newie of recent years as a stunning, unheard instrumental. Representing the Dave Hamilton chapter are O.C. Tolbert and Little Ann’s rare soul classics, both presented in mixes different from our previous releases. Ben E King with ‘Gettin’ To Me’ heads our legendary discoveries section. Melba Moore, Chuck Jackson and Maxine Brown’s unissued recordings that re-floated the grounded SS Northern Soul in the 80s are here, as are the Magicians, whose vocal to ‘Double Cookin’’ shook up the Northern nation. There are vinyl-finding tales of two of the biggest big beat ballads of them all and a story concerning picking up a handful of sleeveless singles in a producer’s house and seeing an undocumented Wand label for Walter Wilson’s 60s stomper which had been assumed to exist as tape only. Luther Ingram supplies the mother of all R&B/Northern crossover numbers, while Bobby Wisdom preens over his potential price tag of £4000; if you can find one. There are classy crowd-pleasers from Toni & the Showmen, Sugar & the Spices, the Fiestas and the Sweethearts that have been marooned on Kent label stories, neglected by all but the pure in heart. Advances in technology mean that the audio is vastly improved on tracks we first released 10 or 15 years ago. On some titles we were able to access superior quality multi-track masters and in Melba Moore’s case we even found an alternative vocal take. It is the first time the 45 mix of Johnny Maestro’s dramatic ‘I’m Stepping Out Of The Picture’ has been reissued. The quality of Chuck Jackson’s ‘Millionaire’ in particular is awesome, while the Magicians now has a potentially life-threatening dynamic. The booklet contains 9,000 words of wisdom, re-telling the Kent Northern saga for long-term inmates or explaining where it all came form for the more recent converts. That’s 30 stunning soul sounds; one for each glorious year. It is not only a celebration but a revelation too; we hope you enjoy the hyperbole. By Ady Croasdell (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2012 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Kent's Cellar Of Soul Back in the 60s when I'd just got to hear about Motown, Stax and Atlantic, there were people working in London record companies who had long since discovered those sources of great music and were moving on and looking at labels such as Goldwax, Dial, Minit and Money. They had made it to their positions of musical power through a combination of knowledge, enthusiasm and luck-.-all stemming from their love of the new black American music that was reaching their ears through their privileged jobs. Support came from the information flow from like-minded collectors across the country and from journalists of the calibre of Dave Godin at Blues & Soul and Norman Jopling at Record Mirror. Music lovers like Derek Everett at Stateside, Trevor Churchill at Bell, Guy Stevens at Sue, Alan Warner at UA and John Abbey at Action were trying to get hits for their companies but undoubtedly their private passion would have influenced several of the releases. I sometimes wonder when confronted with a particularly "out of left field" UK release, whether the missionary zeal of the hirelings was used to impress or appease fellow collectors and did their comfy jobs ever go on the line to get a particular favourite on to the pressing plant machines? These thoughts are particularly appropriate for Kent's latest CD release as 23 of the 26 US 45s featured on it were also issued here in the UK and I doubt if one of them ever charted. Several of those I'm sure would have given the label managers anxious moments when the sales figures were discussed with their bosses. So it is as a tribute to the early soul collecting pioneers that we've compiled KENT'S CELLAR OF SOUL, named in fact after the ground breaking LPs that co-compiler Trevor Churchill issued for Bell in the 60s. A most dramatic of intros heralds Rodger Collins' 1967 mover She's Looking Good-.-it's earthy, obvious and straight to the lower body, music that has the power of life flowing through it. Moses & Joshua's My Elusive Dreams and Homer Banks' A Lot Of Love are hewn from the same tree-.-they have a tough approach like a lot of Southern Soul songs but in truth are more typical, mainstream soul of the late 60s. The next batch of three songs, the Spellbinders' Chain Reaction, Bettye Swann's Make Me Yours and the Intruders' Cowboys To Girls are more sophisticated in their productions with Van McCoy, Arthur Wright and Gamble & Huff at the controls. Indeed the latter two were R&B #1s on the Billboard charts, but that would not have given them any extra chance of making the UK charts in those days. Ironically the Spellbinders' song had two UK releases, showing how it was the power of the record buying dancers that often dictated which releases came out over here. Trevor Churchill had extra scope for obscure releases with his BELL'S CELLAR OF SOUL series of LPs. Esoteric tracks could be sneaked in and there was probably less pressure from above over LP sales. That's how Brooks O'Dell's You Better Make Up Your Mind came out over here-.-its black, orchestral drama would have surely been too subtle for teenagers brought up on Memphis and Motown dance classics. I can guarantee that it would have gone over my head, had I heard it back then. Whereas Jerryo's Karate Boogaloo was right up my intellectual alley, plenty of "sock it to me"s and "oom gow-wow"s along with sexy girls in the background and a beat that really does grab the feet. The other burning musical question in the 60s apart from "Can white men play the blues?" was "Can an instrumental be soulful?" This CD features two great examples of the soul instrumental genre, the Packers' Hole In The Wall and Beau Dollar & The Coins' Soul Serenade. The Packers were probably one of the greatest groupings of soul instrumentalists ever, heralding from Memphis, rather than the LA of the record's release, and the music was very much in the infectious Ramsey Lewis' mid-60s style that just oozed soul. The funky background crowd noises all added to the general hip feel. Beau Dollar's single may have been produced and inspired by a white Cincinnati guitar hero, but the guys got the feel of King Curtis' 1964 hit Soul Serenade just right for its 1966 soul loving audience. So much so that it became the theme tune for the UK's main black music radio show. Other highlights on the CD include Tina Britt's splendidly vivacious The Real Thing-.-very much of its time, but a delight to listen to now nonetheless. The melodic, gentle side of Chicago soul is shown by the Steelers, whose Get It From The Bottom was massive in the Windy City but probably appealed only to die-hards in the UK's smoggy and foggy ones. Similarly classy in the vocal department is the Detroit soul of the Falcons' (I'm A Fool) I Must Love You. White singer Bob Brady could certainly deliver a good Smokey Robinson-style vocal on Everybody's Going To The Love-In, a much better choice of material for him than trying to find out if he could sing the blues. And it has a period piece title to boot! Danny White gives us the greatest Memphis soul recording to come out of New York and the Dreamlovers show us what big Philly pop-soul harmonies are all about. All the tracks are very strong soul numbers, only space precludes me from mentioning them all. We've even thrown in a couple of smoochers at the end to help you really re-live those halcyon days when it was all so new and uncharted. Ady Croasdell (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2003 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Kent's Cellar Of Soul Vol. 2 26 tracks from 1964-1969 |
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Ace Records 2006 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - King New Breed Rhythm & Blues Vol. 2 In the ten years it’s taken for this second volume of “King New Breed R&B” to come to fruition the R&B collecting scene has gone from strength to strength. Many great sounds have been discovered languishing in shops and collections and the phenomenon has become truly international. A lot of these records have crossed over to the Northern soul, popcorn and mod music scenes. Mike Pedicin’s ‘Burnt Toast And Black Coffee’ and Little Willie John’s ‘I’m Shakin’’ from our first King volume have become mainstream retro music classics, outselling even the biggest Northern soul 45s we’ve issued in this period. I’m guessing that our opening track is going to be a rising star of the vintage black music world. Hal Hardy’s ‘Love Man’ is best known for its Northern soul flip ‘House Of Broken Hearts’. I found ‘Love Man’ on YouTube and immediately fell in love with it. It’s a record that defies the blues, soul or funk tags and powers this CD off with a blast. More familiar territory comes with the blues classics ‘I’m Tore Down’ by Freddy King, Little Willie John’s ‘All Around The World’ and Johnny Watson’s ‘Gangster Of Love’. They’ve all been comped before, but sound terrific strategically placed throughout this CD. 1955 is an early starting point to what is, in the main, an early 60s sound but Mel Williams’ ‘Send Me A Picture, Baby’ fits snugly next to the blues grooves of its later vintage companions. The 1957 offerings from Donnie Elbert and Dolph Prince have a ‘Fever’ groove that epitomises the Popcorn end of the scene’s sounds. The earliest-sounding numbers are the doo wop-inspired 1960 recordings from the Hi Tones and Lee Williams & the Moonrays. We were hoping to feature ‘Just A Little Bit Of Everything’ by Herb Hardesty but had tape problems that need a little more time to sort. (The track will definitely be on Herb’s solo CD out later this year.) In its place we opted for ‘Why Did We Have To Part’, featuring a full vocal from Herb’s co-writer Walter Nelson. The “5” Royales are here with their swaying ‘It Hurts Inside’ featuring the soulful vocals of Lowman Pauling, who also teams up with the band’s guitarist Royal Abbit on ‘I’m A Cool Teenager’, a blueprint for the well-groomed youth cults to come. Lowman Pauling also co-wrote the Hi Tones’ song. There is a Willie Wright track not previously issued on CD and a great Eddie Kirk side co-written with future Stax/Volt singer Oscar Mack. Eugene Church describes his girl Geneva’s charms so effectively that I was blushing at one point and the King Pins’ update of the Charms’ ‘Two Hearts’ simply rocks the joint. In researching this CD I was turned on to a wealth of good music and I’m sure the majority of these will be new to the ears of most black music aficionados. By Ady Croasdell (ACE Records) |
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Ace Records 2012 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - King Northern Soul Vol. 2 24 tracks |
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Ace Records 2001 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - King Northern Soul Vol. 3 The King group of labels – Federal, DeLuxe, Hollywood etc – were hugely productive throughout the soul era, so there are hundreds of releases which have taken years to locate. Hence the 10-year gap since “King Northern Soul Vol 2” was released. Northern Soul collectors used to see the blue King label, immediately think “funky”, skip by it and continue the search for an “arranged by Mike Terry” denotation. There is no doubt that a drab grey label such as DeLuxe (as the Dave & Vee 45 from 1969) discourages the listener even before the needle drops. The mainly monochrome aspects of these labels could never compete with the colourful splashes of Groovesville, Giant, Tayster, Pzazz etc in building up the listener’s expectations; inevitably the music was undermined. We have mainly got over those prejudices now, but it is still a shock to hear how good some of those collected tracks sound on CD. The more obvious big Northern sounds were featured on the first two volumes of this series but there are some great numbers here that have become very collectible over the years. Charles Spurling’s ‘That’s My Zone’ and his song ‘Unwind Yourself’ for Marva Whitney both sound very cutting edge for today’s funk-edged fans, as do the Brownettes and Charles’ super-groove ‘Popcorn Charlie’. There are some terrific tracks from long-serving King acts, such as Hank Ballard’s Rudy Clark-penned ‘I’m Just A Fool’, Otis Williams’ ‘When We Get Together’ and Little Willie John’s Drifters-inspired ‘Until Again My Love’. The lesser-known Hollywood label is responsible for four excellent tracks from Robert Moore (who would go on to sing about ‘Party Freaks’ with Miami), L.H. & The Memphis Sounds (one of Packy Axton’s many bands) and Hal Hardy, who provides the superb ‘Name In Lights’; my hum in the head song of the month. There is an increasing movement to play southern soul tracks at Northern Soul dances nowadays; although King was based in Cincinatti, they licensed in southern productions; mainly fromNashvilleandMacon. The Toni Williams, Dan Brantley and James Duncan tracks are all evidence of that growing trend. And, although we have recently issued a New Breed R&B compilation drawn from the King group, there are still some of those influences contained in the songs from Mary Johnson, Mike Williams and Oscar Toney Jr. All but two of the 24 tracks are from King’s wonderfully preserved master tapes and sound alive again on CD. The booklet, with its amazing cover photo of the Presidents Band, is a darn sight prettier than an old DeLuxe label too. By Ady Croasdell (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2012 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - LA's Silver Soul: Lee Silver's Symphonic Productions Stunningly good but rare West Coast 60s & 70s harmonic soul-.-from an unheralded producer whose time has come at last. By Ady Croasdell (Ace Records) I'll tell you how good this CD is. I'm listening right through it for a final check on how it sounds technically, I'm up to track 18 and loving it, and I've just realised there's still four or five of my favourites to come. Unfortunately it ain't always that way. After you've played a compilation several times, in the course of getting it ready for production, ear-hole fatigue usually sets in. Even tracks that are well worthy of inclusion can drag a bit after the eighth run through, but not on this one Baby. It helps that Lee Silver's work is almost as big a pleasant surprise to me as it probably is to you. As recently as less than two years ago I didn't expect the man who had been responsible for writing the Royal Teens Short Shorts (covered over here by none less than Freddie and The Dreamers) to have produced a string of sublime soul singles throughout the 60s & 70s. It mainly came about through Lee's management of, and friendship with, the Pentagons. After their first doo wop hit To Be Loved, the group cut two great early soul singles for Jamie, one for Philips under the alias of the Chesterfields and then broke up into two groupings. Lead singer Joe Jones aka Joey Jones aka Joe C Jones went solo and then returned to Lee's stable in the late 60s as the Jones Brothers with his half-brother and ex-Pentagon Otis Munson. The rest of the group under the guidance of original group member Ken Goodloe formed a new outfit, which was known variously as the Corduroys, Themes, 21st Century and Soul Patrol. It was this conglomeration that was responsible for a very large proportion of Lee's soul music output, contributing 11 of the 24 tracks here. Apart from occasional great lead vocals, Ken Goodloe wrote most of his groups' material in association with his brother Ted or Bill James-.-he sometimes called himself B Goode on the credits. That was how he described himself on the mysterious Pentagons' double-sider, Gonna Wait For You / Forever Yours. The first side moves at a great pace and features the group at its finest in harmonies and traded lead vocals, while the beautiful ballad flip of Forever Yours harks back to their successful vocal group days with a beautiful soul song. To make it more intriguing it seems that it wasn't the Pentagons classic line up at all, more the Goodloe brothers grouping-.-it was apparently first issued as by the Corduroys. As the Themes that group reached the highest peaks for me with one Minit 45, Bent Out Of Shape / No Explanation Needed and two terrific unreleased tracks, Do Yourself A Favor / Reminds Me Of You held in the can for more than thirty years. Having said that, all the 21st Century tracks are good-.-the previously unreleased Search The World Over being a particularly wonderful ballad which exemplifies Lee's symphonic approach to producing and his ear for a great song. The Jones Brothers have the biggest number of individual credits on the CD with six songs. My favourites are the big ballad sound of That's All Over Baby and their so soulful take on Good Old Days which utilises the same backing track as Nathan Williams' ultra rare (and equally good) Lime recording 'What Price'. Apart from Nathan Williams' 45 there was also a one-off single from Minnie Jones & The Minuettes whose version of Shadow Of A Memory on Sugar Records is highly rated by DJs and collectors and adds a female touch to an otherwise male dominated CD. However the third major grouping in Lee's stable also featured females. The Primers aka the Vines consisted of three guys and two girls from San Diego, and though they only came out with two released singles, their How Does It Grab You on Hale Records has proved to be one of the biggest Northern Soul vinyl discoveries of recent years. They also cut a follow up called It's Laid On You which is pretty damned hot too and we hope to include that on a later CD of Lee's material. Lee's music has been one of the delightful surprises of the last few years for me and I'm sure Kent fans will be thrilled too. The fact that he's such a thoroughly nice chap too has been a bonus for me and the many soul fans who have been contacting him to pass on their praise and to see whether he has any old Hale singles lying about anywhere. He doesn't, but you can get all that great music on this little s(S?)ilver disc. |
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Ace Records 2003 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Land Of 1000 Dances 30 tracks |
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Ace Records 1999 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Larry Banks' Soul Family Album It sounds dramatic to say that this CD was Dave Godin’s last musical request, but then Dave wasn’t afraid of drama and was prepared to do almost anything to promote his beloved causes. So: Dave Godin’s last words to me before he left this mortal coil were "Make sure that Larry Banks tribute CD gets done". Many UK soul fans knew Dave’s work from his championing of the early days of Northern Soul. He loved the concept, the fanaticism and passion and its independence from a music business which he thought cynical and more in love with the pound than the music. Later soul fans were able to share his ultimate passion through the Deep Soul tracks that adorned the four CD volumes of "Dave Godin’s Deep Soul Treasures". Dave often said that these were his proudest achievements. If we look at the front cover of the very first volume (he didn’t really expect it to sell enough to warrant a follow up), we see the first of the selected artists names was Larry Banks. That was a conscious decision to give pride of place to the work of Larry and his two wives, Bessie and Jaibi, who also shine out from that momentous CD cover. Their music was a constant and rewarding chapter in Dave’s musical enlightenment. He quickly realised that Larry was more of a behind the scenes’ musician than a performer and so took a great interest and pleasure in the songs and productions that Larry was involved with throughout his life. That led to the discovery of such accomplished and often inspired acts as Kenny Carter, the Dynamics and the Geminis. Kent and Dave had a mutually beneficial relationship and it was nice that we could repay Dave’s faith in us by uncovering more of his heroes’ music in the form of unreleased master tapes. At roughly the same time that Dave’s Soul Treasures, vol 1 came out we issued Rare Collectible And Soulful Vols 1 & 2. These featured unreleased RCA masters including great finished productions of Larry’s songs on Kenny Carter, the Cavaliers and the Metros. There were others that we saved for this project, notably the Kenny Carter and the Cavaliers ballads and the Geminis fast and funky dance numbers. Getting even closer to the source, we made contact with GWP Productions, for whom Larry had been the main soul A&R man in the 60s. Though some of his work ended up at RCA there were also terrific independent productions on the Devonnes and an unknown male group called the Shaladons. Even better for Dave was the discovery of extra Jaibi tracks including her original demo of You Got Me, which, with a superior tape copy of Go Now and Kenny Carter’s original unreleased take on Lights Out meant this CD met Dave’s highest standards. Not being limited to Deep Soul meant that I could unleash Northern Soul dancers like Milton Bennett (Larry’s Go Now co-composer)’s What’s One More Lie, the Dynamics’ My Life Is No Better, the Devonnes’ Doin’ The Getting Up and the Shaladons superior take on the Hesitations’ We Can Do It. Larry’s own vocals often matched up to those of his pupils and his Select 45 Will You Wait was a recording Dave had championed since the 60s. His quirky Spring single is absolutely captivating in this setting, whereas when I originally picked it up I just thought it was good but unclassifiable soul. Bessie Banks’ moving tribute to Dave at his funeral showed that here was more than the usual critic and musicians relationship. Dave had become a regular correspondent with several members of the Banks family and their contributions to this CD have been invaluable, taking us back to that most creative period of the 1960s, when sublime soul music was being created. Even though it’s taken forty years to access and appreciate some of it ; it’s been well worth the wait. Ady Croasdell (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2007 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Laurie Records Story Vol. 1 29 biisiä New Yorkista, Laurie Records Doo Wop 1958-1967 |
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Ace Records 2003 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Laurie Records Story Vol. 3 When I think “girl group label”, visions of Philles, Red Bird and Dimension do the locomotion in my head. But I’ve always thought of Laurie as the home of Bronx deities Dion and the Belmonts. (I grew up there – let me assure you, we built shrines.) Sure, Laurie had the Chiffons, but otherwise, what else? Plenty else, as this femmecentric third volume of the Laurie Records Story vividly illustrates. It turns out that several of the genre’s most revered figures made under-the-radar contributions to the imprint’s oeuvre. Ace compiler (and girl group ace) Mick Patrick has rounded up 24 compelling arguments for Laurie’s girl group bona-fides. Barely resembling Tommy James’ garage-y remake, the original ‘Hanky Panky’ by the Summits name-checks its producers, the Tokens. The song’s co-writer, Brill Building Queen Ellie Greenwich, moonlights as Les Girls with session cohort Mikie Harris. The duo sang countless backups for many years (they’re on Blondie’s 1976 debut LP) and it’s nice to hear them front and centre on ‘I Still Love You’. Another studio stalwart, Jean Thomas, is known to have masqueraded as the Powder Puffs, Rag Dolls and Beach Girls. Here, she’s the Cheese Cakes on the bouncy ‘Heading For A Heartbreak’. Noms de plumes abound. Brenda Lee Jones (Jean of Dean & Jean) channels Motown and Marie Antoinette (supposedly the notorious Alice Wonder Land) perches atop the wall of sound. Van McCoy fashioned ‘Shy Guy’ for the Charmers, but scoring with an Essex soundalike was easier said than done. The genre-defining voice of Mary Aiese, our beloved Reparata, is heard at the very beginning and end of her glorious recording career. There is no shortage of unsung heroines, either. Occasional Angel Bernadette Carroll emotes the bizarre ‘Circus Girl’ and young drama queen Dawn lays on the angst with a trowel borrowed from the Shangri-Las. But of all the unknowns we know, perhaps Beverly Warren was most unjustly denied success with Goffin-King’s majestic ‘Let Me Get Close To You’, backed by the Cookies. A brilliant vocalist, Bev still performs in the New York area. As valedictorians of Laurie’s girl group class, the Chiffons make four late-60s appearances. Their hit-making heyday behind them, the Bronx quartet settled for artistic triumph on the thumping ‘Stop, Look And Listen’ and the brooding ‘If I Knew Then (What I Know Now)’. Years earlier, the Chiffons’ first visit to the studio had yielded the era’s most successful girl group song (‘He’s So Fine’), but their magnum opus came in 1969. ‘Love Me Like You’re Gonna Lose Me’, produced and written by Irwin Levine and latter-day Brill Building princess Toni Wine, is simply a masterpiece. With a shimmering arrangement by the formidable John Abbott and shared, soulful leads by Judy Craig and Sylvia Peterson, this song deserved to be a mega-hit. So here’s an opportunity to enjoy some undiscovered classics, many making their CD debut. Not one of the songs herein managed to trouble the Billboard charts. It only sounds like a greatest hits collection. By Dennis Garvey (ACE RECORDS) |
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Ace Records 2009 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Leather Soul Vol. 1 - Where The Bop Meets The Buzz |
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Oosoul 2011 | CD | 10.00 € |
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| VA: - Leiber & Stoller Story Vol. 3 Shake 'Em Up & Let Roll 24 tracks 1963-1969 |
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Ace Records 2007 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Let's Crossover Again |
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Ace Records 1999 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Let's Paint The Town Red Vol. 2 |
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Floridita Records 2008 | LP | 13.00 € |
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| VA: - London American Label Year By Year 1963 The USA was the first country in which a London label appeared. It was the flagship of British Decca’s American operations as far back as 1934. In 1949 the first batch of these American records was made available in the UK on the new London American imprint. In 2009 Ace launched its “London American Label Year By Year” series, which with this volume devoted to 1963, stands at five volumes. 1963 was a very good year for Phil Spector, the releases on whose Philles label appeared on London American in the UK. Until very recently, Philles recordings were out of bounds for compilations such as this one, but with the record producer presently out of circulation, his catalogue has very recently become available for license. Every cloud, eh? Let’s face it, this particular edition would not have been an accurate representation of 1963 without the Ronettes, the Crystals, Darlene Love and Bob B Soxx & the Blue Jeans, all of whom are present and correct. Yay! The inclusion of Darlene Love’s ‘A Fine Fine Boy’ here marks the first time the original 45 version has been legally available on CD. (All other digital issues contain a re-edit that is the result of irreparable damage to the original master.) Spector owed a lot of his success to Ellie Greenwich and her husband Jeff Barry, with whom he collaborated almost exclusively throughout 1963. The threesome co-wrote ‘A Fine Fine Boy’, ‘Then He Kissed Me’, ‘Be My Baby’ that year, and many more besides. Greenwich and Barry also penned bathos specialist Ray Peterson’s death-disc ‘Give Us Your Blessing’ and the Raindrops’ ‘What A Guy’, included here too. (Ellie and Jeff were the Raindrops, but you knew that.) 1963 was also a prime year for girl groups and female singers in general, a fact reflected here via the Sherrys, Little Eva, Marcie Blane, Robin Ward, Shirley Ellis and Ruby & the Romantics, not forgetting 50s R&B star LaVern Baker and South African ex-pat Miriam Makeba. There’s a lot more to this CD than Phil Spector, girl groups and Brill Building songwriters, but hey, that’s me for you. In all, this collection contains the A-sides of 28 of the 178 singles released on the London American label in 1963. As the series is expanding in two directions, we’re unsure if the next volume will focus on 1964 or 1958, both of which were very good years for American music. Watch this space to find out. Either way, it’ll be a winner. By Mick Patrick (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2011 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - London American Label Year By Year 1964 1964 was not a great year to be an American chart hopeful. After an indifferent start in ’63, the Beatles had finally come, seen and conquered the US Hot 100. If your chances of scoring a decent-sized hit weren’t already hindered by the Fab Four’s domination of the Top 20, there was the mighty rearguard of the Dave Clark Five, Herman’s Hermits, the Animals, Freddie and the Dreamers, Petula Clark and anyone else who sang with a British twang to contend with. If the majority of American singers and musicians started to feel like strangers in their homeland courtesy of post-Beatlemania pandemonium, you can hardly blame them. Fortunately, despite the chart success of UK acts, there was still plenty of great American music being made, and a lot found its way into British ears courtesy of the London-American label. Not as much as in previous years – as London now had stiff competition for US product from Stateside and Pye International – but enough to make the 1964 entry in our “Year By Year” series as varied and enjoyable as the previous volumes. 1964 was a watershed year for London. They lost representation of several labels that had been vital components of their catalogue. Some, such as Atlantic, gained their own identity elsewhere within the Decca organisation. Others – Sun, Specialty, Cadence – more or less ceased to function. Dot Records, a major player in London’s past success, moved across town to Pye. But the London A&R division kept on with Monument, Philles, Kapp and other important US repertoire sources, and actually managed to rack up more UK hits than they had the previous year. Our collection gives you the gist of how London faced up to the challenge of 1964. Early soul classics from Solomon Burke, Otis Redding and the Drifters; examples of Phil Spector’s Wall Of Sound from the Crystals and the Ronettes; Buddy Holly clones Ray Ruff and David Box; Elvis soundalike Terry Stafford; boss instrumentals courtesy of Willie Mitchell, the Baja Marimba Band and Bill Black’s Combo; country hits from Jerry Wallace and Ned Miller; and even some American Merseybeat from Washington DC’s Chartmakers, All this and Jerry Lee and Satchmo too – what’s not to love? As ever, the booklet is full of label illustrations, reviews, sheet music and copious track-by-track annotation. Wherever possible, London’s own original tape sources have been used to preserve authenticity. It’s taken longer to pull this volume together than any previous one, but we are sure the end product will justify the wait for London American collectors and all fans of mid-60s US pop. By Tony Rounce (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2013 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Lookey Dookey - Talking Trash |
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Rhythm & Blooz | LP | 15.00 € |
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| VA: - Love Songs Elvis, Jackie Wilson, Dino Desi & Billy, Tom Jones, Paul Anka, Bobby Darin, Little Anthony & The Imperials, Brooklyn Bridge,Lulu, Beatles, The Fifth Dimension, Smokey Robinson, The Carpenters, The Mamas & Papas. 63 min. 18 tracks. |
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Eagle Vision 2004 | DVD | 9.00 € |
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| VA: - Manhattan Soul Kent Records cut its teeth on these great New York labels’ recordings. The imprints were so much more than the sum total of their hits. Many of the big records are out on Kent already, so we have gone back to the one-offs, neglected sides and the newly-discovered that have turned up more recently: for soul collectors only. Dancers are catered for by Northern Soul’s adopted sides such as Marie Knight’s ‘That’s No Way To Treat A Girl’, here in the intriguing long version that Kent first discovered, Betty Moorer’s Latin-tinged ‘Speed Up’, Diane Lewis’ Detroit opus ‘Without Your Love’ and J.B. Troy’s current in-demander ‘Live On’. There are some choice unissued recordings from the unknown Helen Henry, singer/producer Ed Townsend (who purveys a beaty proto-soul number written by none other than a Poet) and a terrific slab of early funk from the mighty Jackie Moore. An Ashford, Simpson and Armstead number ‘One Time Too Many’ is a mouth-watering taster of a forthcoming CD of unissued Shirelles’ recordings. A further previously unheard debut comes from the Fabulous Dinos (a group well from their King recordings as the Fabulous Denos), whose ‘Diamond Ring’ is a different song to Sammy Ambrose’s ‘This Diamond Ring’, although cut for the same Musicor stable. Conversely, debutant recording artist Lee Thomas’ ‘Millionaire’ is the same song Chuck Jackson cut in the early 60s and which caused quite a stir in rare soul circles when first played out and eventually released in the mid-80s. The more modern sounds of the labels’ influential 70s singles are represented by a southern-sounding Ann Bailey, a Curtis Mayfield-inspired Patti Jo and the oddly named, but surprisingly soulful, Buckeye Politicians, whose fascinating biog is featured in the booklet. Two crossover ballads cut in Philadelphia by Winfield Parker and George Tindley are from the turn of the 60s and show how Wand had a great ear for quality music, even if the sales were disappointingly low – what they lost in $, we’ve repaid them in admiration over the past decades. From the same city, but from a musical era a world away, comes one of the first deejays to cut (as opposed to spin) a disc, Douglas “Jocko” Henderson. His ‘Blast Off To Love’ is a catchy mover that was style over soul, as befits a hip wordsmith. Overlooked 45s such as the Tabs’ ‘Take My Love Along With You’ sound great from a new mix-down from the original multi track tape, while Johnny Maestro’s ‘Afraid Of Love’ (the flip of ‘Stepping Out Of The Picture’) has been neglected solely because of the attention paid to its topside (well, that and the four-figure price tag). Dan & the Clean Cuts substantially cheaper ‘Walking With Pride’ epitomises cool long before the term was universally applied to anything vaguely half-decent. The booklet has some stunning photos of the artists along with a nice selection of label scans to pretty up the several thousand word musical and historical appraisal. Welcome back Scepter, Wand and Musicor. It’s been too long. By Ady Croasdell (ACE Records) |
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Ace Records 2011 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Manhattan Soul Vol. 2 Scepter, Wand and Musicor have been a staple of the Kent connoisseur’s diet for nearly thirty years, since Jack Montgomery’s ‘Dearly Beloved’ opened the “Club Soul” Kent LP in 1984. Along with stunning solo compilations from Maxine Brown, Tommy Hunt, Chuck Jackson and the Shirelles there have been about a dozen LP and CD compilations of all the great artists who didn’t have enough tracks for solo albums. These varied from out-and-out Northern Soul, to big city ballads, to Southern Soul to Modern and funk. We don’t categorise quite as much nowadays and Kent has always been liberal in its mixing of the genres, so it is not surprising to see a typically diverse selection on our latest Manhattan Soul volume. One of the main reasons we’ve re-visited the series is the new access we have had to the multi-track tapes, which either contained previously unheard songs or offered great tape quality on seminal tracks that had been dubbed from disc n the past. The “new to our ears” recordings on this compilation include Jimmy Radcliffe’s original demo (or first stage recording) of his classic self-penned song ‘Deep In The Heart Of Harlem’, a Benny Gordon rousing vocal work-out to his fast and funky ‘Horsin’ Around’ groove, Lois Lane’s rhythm & soul with a touch of gospel ‘No Jealous Lover’ and the Catalinas’ blue eyed beach music of ‘Who Knows Better’. Greatly improved sound quality can be heard on the Soul Brothers beat ballad ‘The Parade Of Broken Hearts’, Ed Bruce’s sublime study in melancholy ‘I’m Gonna Have A Party’ and the most infectious dancer since ‘Dance To The Music’ in Lou Lawton’s ‘Knick Knack Patty Wack’; don’t let that title phase you. While we were recreating those sessions from the 60s we looked at the whole of the formidable catalogue and found some wonderful masters that hadn’t been available since the vinyl to CD switch. Tracks from soul legends such as Big Maybelle with ‘How Do You Feel Now’, Roscoe Robinson and his plaintive ‘Lonesome Guy’ and tommy Hunt's ‘New Neighbourhood’ which took me back to those rammed-out, steamy 100 Club all nighters of the mid 80s. Other gems like Willie Hatcher’s magnificent ‘Who Am I Without You Baby’, Joe Perkins’ atmospheric ‘Runaway Slave’ and the close soul harmony of the Premiers on ‘Lonely Weatherman’ had never graced a digital disc before. Researching the music was no less interesting than listening to it. We unearthed a current member of the US House Of Representatives; a lead singer who flew his plane into a mountain; and a one-single wonder who still plies his trade crooning in Las Vegas. Apart from the Big Apple, there’s a hunk of Philly, a splash of Chicago and some Memphis grits; all making for a soul food sandwich to savour. By Ady Croasdell (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2012 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Masterpieces Of Modern Soul To the uninitiated I won't go into the full explanation of Modern Soul, there are more than enough words in the sleevenotes. Suffice it to say that it is primarily danceable 70s soul music with a solid, as opposed to a funky beat. Having said that, the Modern Soul crowd has a very liberal view on what is danceable and having emerged at least partly as an antidote to the 100mph Northern Soul stompers, are willing to wander on to the dancefloor to the most laid-back of tunes. In fact the intimacy of many of their venues and the occasional lack of floor space often sees discerning soul fans grooving to their favourites on linoleum, sticky carpet or even table tops. The quality of the song and the singer's performance are given higher priority than the correctness of the rhythm, while clever dance moves are considered less important than say flowery bowling shirts or an encyclopaedic knowledge of Tyrone Davis' recording career. One of the most typical Modern Soul tracks on this CD would be Ted Taylor's recently discovered master tape Fair Warning. Ted was a southern USA style, emotional soul singer with an accomplished roster of recordings. The song was provided by some of Leon Haywood's admired writing team, has a memorable melody, apt lyrics and moves at an easy mid tempo pace for 30+ year-olders. It has a full production with string and horn sections and a few funky guitar licks thrown in at the change of tempo breaks. Some discerning Modern Soul DJs have been given advance copies of the track to insinuate it into the subconscious of their unquestioning followers (joke!), so as this is the only form in which it is available to the public, sales are assured and I could shut up now. But checking my word count and the rest of the music on the CD, I won't. Similarly soulful 70s offerings include tracks by Millie Jackson, Jacqueline Jones, the Four Tees (no relation to the 6TS) and Garland Green. Even more laid-back crossover numbers abound in Sam Nesbit's rare and expensive Chase Those Clouds Away and the Millionaires' great soul group sound I'm The One Who Loves You. Several of the items will appeal to Northern fans too, especially the Houston Outlaws' vinyl rarity Ain't No Telling: a hugely tuneful and attractive song. The opening track, previously unissued, will excite all kinds of soul fans, as Debra Johnson's To Get Love You've Got To Give Love is danceable, soulful and features the kind of classy Miles Grayson arrangement that made Lynn Varnado's Wash And Wear Love such a rare soul classic. This song also features the noteworthy lyric "I don't want to be just your appetiser: now your main course is someone else" (note to self, must approach KFC with view to licensing). Lynn's super rare single Second Hand Love is also featured and, like the Ronnie Walker and Pretenders tracks, is more old school 70s Northern than Modern but falls under the latter's big musical umbrella. Like most good Kent CDs, there are some pleasant surprises that many might have missed. I was particularly chuffed with the Jean Shy Fantasy track that I found lurking in my racks after collector Dave Welding reminded me of it. Similarly I hadn't realised how much I enjoyed the Renfro Records oddity Love Me Baby by Tender Loving Care until I'd listened through the finished master a couple of times. Some of the tracks have been out in one form or another but probably have been missed by most Modern Soul devotees. It's not too likely that soul fans would have added the double LP, BGP CD of jazz brother Idris Muhammad just to get the soulful I'm A Believer on to their sound system. Similarly many will have missed out on the early 80s soul of Gil Billingsley as it was featured on a primarily 60s Kent Detroit soul CD. Al Christian's Chant single version of Bobby Wilburn's I'm A Lonely Man is quite different from the original, and as Steve "Guru" Guarnori pointed out to me, is not to be found on either of the Bill Haney Chant CDs on Kent. We've jumped at the chance to re-release Mary Love Comer's Modern Soul anthem Come Out Of The Sandbox simply because we could. It's not been out since Kent's Mary Love solo CD that combined her early Modern songs with the later Colove recordings. Listening to it again for this compilation, I was bemused as to why it had sold in relatively low numbers-.-it really is a good CD (hint, hint). Finally I was hit by a piece of glaringly obvious inspiration and managed to license a 2002 recording from Lou Pride to round of this disc. Bringin' Me Back Home is a great soul song for any decade and reflects well on the Modern Soul crowd who are constantly seeking out the best US soul tracks for their appreciation and enjoyment, whatever the date on the disc is. by Ady Croasdell (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2003 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Masterpieces Of Modern Soul Vol. 3 It’s been two years since the last in our “Masterpieces Of Modern Soul” series. We compilers patiently accumulate a list of ingredients for the forthcoming feast and when it appears that the quantity and quality of the components are just so, into the pot they go. Occasionally the concoction doesn’t taste quite right and we jettison a flavour once its replacement has been lined up. The fun is in the cooking and this time my initial flavour-burst came with the opening track, an obscure 1978 Los Angeles release by 7 Days Unlimited on the Big Town label, a subsidiary of Modern. It’s so laid back, the guys’ heads touch the floor, but the record has so much quality I’m sure it will be acclaimed a classic once heard. After such a left-field choice, my conservative nature kicked in and I followed up with two sure-shots. Art Gentry’s 1972 Fame Studios recording of a great George Jackson song, ‘This Is My Chance’ has been played by discerning customers since its debut on Ace in 1997; now at last it is featured on a dedicated dance compilation. Similarly certain will be the positive reaction to Candi Staton’s ‘One More Hurt’ – if you’ve got it, flaunt it. As with the Art Gentry track, the Hesitations’ ‘Go Away’ and Loleatta Holloway’s ‘This Man’s Arms’ first appeared on Kent promotional vinyl. It seems a bit odd to be illustrating our own records in the booklet, but with limited presses and the passing of up to 16 years, these babies ain’t spotted too often. The contributions of Eddie Hill, the Sweeteens, Nightchill and James Carpenter have all been on Kent CDs before, but mainly on label- or producer-based collections that may have escaped the busy modern soul man about town. The CD also boasts its quotient of previously unreleased gems. Marshall McQueen interprets his excellent composition ‘Any Fool Can Feel It’ to a fully orchestrated track produced by evergreen Los Angeles legend Kent Harris. Detroit singer Rose Batiste offers her last-known recording ‘The Feeling Is Gone’, created by writer-producers George McGregor and Jerry Williams. If the credits weren’t enough to excite, listen to the wailing desperation in Rose’s voice and rejoice in this long lost tape’s appearance. Although the modern vibe tends to be mid-tempo and super-soulful these days, we never forget our Northern roots and records such Charles Russell’s Dave Crawford-produced ‘It Ain’t Easy’ helped mould both dance scenes from its discovery in the late 70s, a handful of years after its release. The admirable Jesse Davis gives us an out-and-out uptempo dancer from his San Diego-produced album “Hollywood Gypsies”. One to raise the eyebrows of the vinyl hounds is Gloria Lucas’ ‘You Won’t Be True’ on the insanely rare Flodavieur label. I doubt if this has had many plays as copies just aren’t around; we have a label scan to prove it exists, though. The Crusaders and Betty Gouché will also set you back a few quid to own the plastic, while Tommy Bush’s first of two Specialty 45s is reasonably priced now, but get onto this winner sharp-ish, while you still can. We’ve also got deep soul from Barbara Brown, scat singing from Melvin Sparks’ vocalist Jimmy Scott, modern soul monsters from Tommy Tate and Eddie Billups, slow grooves from Darondo and even some hot-lovin’ from Pat Livingstone. If that don’t turn you on, nowt will. By Ady Croasdell (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2011 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Memphis Boys - The Story Of American Studios There can be few with an interest in the music of the American South who didn’t welcome the recent publication of Memphis Boys, Roben Jones’ essential history of American Studios. Established by songwriter-producer Chips Moman and his business partner Don Crews in 1964, it took a couple of years for American to find its true audio identity, but once the in-house group of key musicians – the Memphis Boys of Roben’s title – were all in place the steady trickle of hits and future classics quickly became a flood. Thanks to those players – Tommy Cogbill, Reggie Young, Bobby Emmons, Gene Chrisman, Dan Penn, Spooner Oldham and others – the American sound became as important a part of recording history as that which emanated from the studios of Motown, Cosimo’s, FAME and Memphis neighbours Sun, Stax and Hi. The first Hot 100 biggies to be recorded at American – James & Bobby Purify’s ‘Shake A Tail Feather’ and Oscar Toney Jr’s ‘For Your Precious Love’ – were taped at the same session in March 1967, around the same time as Dan Penn was putting the Box Tops through their paces on ‘The Letter’, one of the biggest hits of 1967 and American’s first worldwide chart-topper. Not a bad year by anyone’s standards. How quickly American’s stock rose in the eyes of others – particularly the companies that used the studio and the Memphis Boys on a regular basis – can be assessed by the fact that, by 1968, American was entertaining a client roster that included Neil Diamond, Petula Clark, B.J. Thomas, Dionne Warwick, Dusty Springfield and a local boy by the name of Elvis Presley who was looking to make his music as relevant as it had been 15 years earlier. Although this collection doesn’t contain every major hit that came out of the funky little studio on Thomas Street, Memphis (we’re saving some for a possible second volume), as a listening experience it’s hard to beat – particularly when enjoyed in conjunction with Roben’s brilliant book. By Tony Rounce (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2012 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Midnight Brew - 22 Instrumental Northern Soul Gems |
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Vinyl Only Records 1999 | LP | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Mirwood Soul Story 24 tracks |
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Ace Records 2005 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Mirwood Soul Story Vol. 2 24 tracks |
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Ace Records 2006 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Mo' Mod Jazz 22 tracks |
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Ace Records 1998 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Mod Jazz 25 tracks |
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Ace Records 1996 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Mod Jazz Forever The night is dark, and crisp enough to require a dark blue woollen overcoat over your midnight blue two-button narrow-lapelled, slim-fitting suit. Your loafers are oxblood and polished to a shine that reflects well on the rest of your outfit. You’re looking for the perfect soundtrack for a night on the town, not just any town, but a city, a bustling metropolis lit by neon and a full of a million souls – although you only want to be seen with a small percentage, the ones who can share your outlook and need the right sort of sounds. Fortunately for you the mod jazz crew are back in town and we have scoured the world to provide you with the perfect blend of jazz, with a touch of the blues, a shake of soul and a pinch of latin. Whether you are sipping a whisky sour in a wood-panelled bar, trying to created the perfect Mad Men moment, or working up a sweat, we have the number for you. As usual, we pay only lip service to genre divides, and bring you lots of great jazz vocals, often with an R&B twist. Check Troy Dodds’ ‘The Real Thing’ (the B-side of a super-expensive Northern soul hit) or Floyd White’s ‘Finders Keepers’, lifted from a previously unreleased Invader session. Mod jazz favourite Mark Murphy turns up with the amazing rare 45-only ‘It’s Like Love’ and Clint Stacy, Bobby Jenkins and Little Bob all help keep the mod jazz quality high. On the female side we have the phenomenal Tobi Lark, who is known for her soul numbers but was a consummate jazz performer, as was Byrdie Green, who gives us her take on Freddie Hubbard’s ‘Return Of The Prodigal Son’. A good mod jazz record needs plenty of roaring Hammond organ, which we give you by Brother Jack McDuff, Johnny “Hammond” Smith and the great Reuben Wilson with one of his earliest recordings. That other great Hammond exponent Billy Larkin sings like Georgie Fame and strokes some piano keys on ‘Looking’, which sounds rather like ‘Fever’, a song served up in a wonderful version by Buddy Guy. The Night Beats deliver a garage jazz take on ‘Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf Pt 2’ mod jazz regulars Hank Jacobs, Dave Hamilton and Johnny Lytle keep our toes tapping and our fingers clicking. As you leave the room to the previously unreleased British jazz cut ‘Sunshine Superman’ by Bocking, Robinson, Morais you will be feeling as sharp as ever. Another mod jazz miracle. By Dean Rudland (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2012 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - More Miles Than Money 2CD More Miles Than Money: Journeys Through American Music is a book I researched and wrote between 2006-2008. In many ways I’d been waiting my entire life to write More Miles. Growing up in Mt Roskill – a working class suburb of Auckland, New Zealand, where there were no music venues, cinemas, pubs, nothing but churches and rugby fields – I took refuge in Mark Twain and Jack Kerouac’s adventures while AM radio (modelled on US radio) spun hits by Freddy Fender, the Amazing Rhythm Aces, Little Feat et al. I dreamed of escaping Auckland’s suburbs to ride Route 66 and Highway 61, ears and eyes open. Eventually I got to live my dream and More Miles is the story of those travels. I didn’t know it back then but Kiwi radio was often playing music akin to that which Charlie Gillett played on his Honky Tonk radio show in London. Discovering Charlie’s book The Sound Of The City sent me scouring through secondhand bookstores in search of old copies of Cream, Creem and Let It Rock, where the writings of Charlie and other likeminded journalists appeared. I’d go so far as to say that a feature Charlie wrote on the great New Orleans producer-arranger Harold Battiste (Cream #5, Sept 1971) was what initially inspired me to want to search out the largely unsung heroes of American music. At the same time as reading Charlie Gillett I was buying US imports on a variety of labels, with Arhoolie being my favourite. Mexican culture fascinated me, especially that which arose from the borderlands, the Tex-Mex/Tejano music. (Blame this on my dad taking me to see Sam Peckinpah’s westerns.) Discovering a bin full of Arhoolie Records in a downtown record shop introduced me to a treasure trove of magical Mexican American music and reading about Arhoolie founder Chris Strachwitz’s efforts to record the finest American vernacular music provided even more inspiration. Later on, Canyon Records would open my ears to how Native American culture celebrated its survival. Around the same time an uncle who loved jazz gave me Curtis Mayfield’s “Superfly” album – he found it too funky for his tastes. Talk about life-changing records: to this day Curtis remains my favourite US soul singer. I dedicated More Miles Than Money to Charlie, Chris and the indomitable spirit of Curtis Mayfield. Tragically, Charlie died earlier this year. He, like Curtis, lives on as an indomitable spirit and continues to inspire me. This compilation is, again, dedicated to Charlie, Chris and Curtis: the three Cs who helped me hear America. More Miles Than Money reflects on an America that made the mightiest music of the 20th Century. This compilation aims then to salute those who inspired me to ride US highways and document those I encountered as I wandered through honky-tonks, juke joints and barrios. Enjoy! By Garth Cartwright (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2010 | CD | 20.00 € |
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| VA: - More Perfect Harmony - Sweet Soul Groups 1967-1975 The general popularity of 60s and early 70s ‘Group Soul’ seems to continue to be on the rise, an increasingly collectable commodity in recent years. This is due in no small part to the swell of interest among doo wop collectors in the past 10-15 years. The line between the very best doo wop cuts and the very best soul harmony sides is not a very long one. Thus it was perhaps inevitable that those collectors who either have every important group record from the 1950s and early 60s – or can’t afford to invest in the ones they don’t have – would eventually unite them with those of us who have long extended a similar level of appreciation in the other direction. Kent’s “In Perfect Harmony” series was introduced to cater to both camps, with a mixture of tried and trusted soul favourites – by some of the genre’s most outstanding groups – and previously unissued gems from group soul’s golden decade (approximately 1966-1976, in your compiler’s opinion). Its aims, as a series, are to show that these kind of records were both pan-American and multi-racial in their execution and that, as always, soul – and in this case, sweet soul - is not really about where you’re from or what colour you are. This is especially true of our all-new Volume Two. Within its hour and a bit’s playing time, we feature blue-eyed soulsters from Nashville in the Magnificent 7, the mixed race Soulville All-Stars from Pittsburgh, PA (who also played their own instruments, as well as singing as pretty as you like) and the pride of New York’s latin soul community, brother Joe Bataan. We also have the best in African American vocal groups – of both sexes - from cities as far apart as Memphis and Detroit, Los Angeles and New York, New Jersey and Chicago. All, we’re happy to say, fully dedicated to bringing you MORE PERFECT HARMONY in the sweetest and loveliest way. Aside from the obvious fact that we are joyfully privileged to bring you hitherto unreleased gems from the vaults of Stax, Twinight and Westbound Records, I’m personally delighted - as series compiler - that so many of our inclusions have never previously been reissued, in any shape or form. There’s something great going on here, almost everywhere you point the CD player’s laser, be it the sultry Island Soul of Foxy’s I Like The Way You Love Me, the endearingly low-budget lilt in Lee Williams and The Cymbals’ Northern favourite A Girl From A Country Town, the relentless beauty of the Climates sublime Memphis masterpiece No You For Me or the overwhelmingly intense Chi-town classic Someone Else’s Arms by Channel 3 – at least twenty times better than its much acclaimed Northern flip The Sweetest Thing (something on which annotator John Ridley and compiler yours truly both agree!). These are just a few of the many delights in store for you in “More Perfect Harmony” – a CD with a heartbeat that is summed up by Joe Bataan’s exquisite version of the Exits’ essential Under The Streetlamp. Doo wop and group soul devotees alike can both agree that, where this kind of music’s concerned, the “Street”s the same, only the “Lamp” has been changed to protect the heritage! By Tony Rounce (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2005 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Mostly Ghostly - More Horror For Halloween |
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Ace Records 2010 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Move With The Groove - Hardcore Chicago Soul 2CD |
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Charly Records 2012 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - My Goodness, Yes ! 20 tracks |
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Sundazed Music 2005 | CD | 20.00 € |
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| VA: - New Breed R&B with Added Popcorn 24 tracks |
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Ace Records 2008 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Next Stop Is Vietnam - The War On Record 1961-2008 (13-CD set, LP-sized slipcase with 304page hardcover book. 334 tracks, playing time: more than 16h:49min). The most comprehensive anthology of music inspired by the Vietnam War ever released. Over 330 titles covering all facets of the war and its aftermath featuring The Doors, Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Bruce Springsteen, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Country Joe McDonald and dozens of other artists. Rarely heard documentary material including patriotic Public Service Announcements, field news reports and intercepted North Vietnamese radio transmissions of Jane Fonda and Hanoi Hannah. A heavily illustrated, full-colour 304-page book containing extensive artist/song notes, Vietnam War history and recollections by vets on their favourite songs. Two discs of music exclusively by Vietnam veterans. Never-before-released tracks recorded during the war by in-country soldiers. Mister, Where Is Vietnam ...NEXT STOP IS VIETNAM: The War On Record, 1961-2008 is a stunning, years-in-the-making anthology of the Vietnam War's musical legacy. Presented on 13 CDs with a 304-page book illustrated with numerous archival photographs, this collection examines the war in a powerful and unprecedented way. Over 330 music and spoken word tracks take the listener through a guided tour of this epochal period of modern history. From America's first, na‹ve impressions of a country called Vietnam through the spirited musical debate over the morality of the war to the healing meditations on the conflict's lengthy aftermath, this set captures it all and more. Bob Dylan, Joan Baez,Merle Haggard, Pete Seeger, Bruce Springsteen, Phil Ochs, Johnny Cash, Yoko Ono, John Lennon, The Doors, Country Joe McDonald and dozens of other artists including many Vietnam veterans are the tour guides through this enlightening and entertaining journey. - The full-color book that accompanies the music is packed with information on the songs and the artists who recorded them by music scholar Hugo A. Keesing; a history of the war by Vietnam historian Lois T. Vietri; and an oral history of the tunes that 'incountry' vets loved best by authors Doug Bradley and Craig Werner. The introduction to this remarkable tome is written by the legendary Country Joe McDonald. Strap in for a long and fascinating ride ...NEXT STOP IS VIETNAM. |
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Bear Family 2010 | CD-Box | 200.00 € |
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| VA: - Nobody Wins - Stax Southern Soul 1968-1975 One of the projects that we feel proudest of is “Take Me To The River: A Southern Soul Story”. It was a labour of love and a lot of people were very appreciative of it, justifying our own confidence in the project. In the wake of its success we thought it would be good to do some single CD follow-up projects looking at specific areas of the Southern Soul world; unfortunately other things got in the way, including the rather wondrous opportunities we have had with the chaps at Fame, so we put the idea on the back burner until we could do it properly. With “Nobody Wins” I hope we have been able to do so. Focussing on the output of Stax Records may seem like shooting fish in a barrel, but by 1968 a lot had changed at the label that had effectively codified Southern Soul music with William Bell’s ‘You Don’t Miss Your Water’, and then took it to the world via Otis Redding. Otis had died in a plane crash in 1967 and then, at the termination of the label’s distribution deal with Atlantic, Stax had been left without its back catalogue. To combat these problems label head Al Bell had formulated a plan to make it a full-service record label, recording, manufacturing, distributing and marketing the recordings. To make this viable Stax had to compete with the biggest R&B label Motown and release far more material. With this is mind producer Don Davis was brought in to add some Detroit know-how, and music and ideas were imported from all over the USA. Stax may not have been exclusively releasing Southern music any more but it was still a Southern label. Most of the acts were came from the local area, and as the biggest label outside R&B’s traditional Northern strongholds, it was a magnet for anyone from the region who hoped to get a record deal. On top of that the Southern sound was so successful that even records that were recorded in other parts of the country tried to emulate the sound (noticeable on Calvin Scott’s Stax album for example). “Nobody Wins” gives an overview of the prevailing developments within Southern Soul, which show a move from a Stax-dominated landscape with our earliest productions, to something that ends up looking towards the styles being championed by Hi Records on the other side of Memphis. The music is uniformly excellent and sometimes, as on Johnny Daye’s ‘Stay Baby Stay’, William Bell’s ‘Loving On Borrowed Time’ or ‘Shouldn’t I Love Him’ by Mable John, transcendent. It is a great treat to be able to spotlight neglected cuts from Willie Singleton, Mack Rice or Freddie Waters, which have been hidden away as B-sides or on expensive box-sets. We’ve also discovered some previously unreleased gems from the previously unknown Sylvia and the Blue Jays, and from Bettye Crutcher and Chuck Brooks. It is also great to be able to focus on some better-known tracks by the Soul Children and Ollie & The Nightingales and bring them together with the other tracks featured here. From start to finish this is great, great soul music. By Dean Rudland (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2012 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Northern Monsters 24 tracks |
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Ace Records 2007 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Northern Soul's Classiest Rarities 2 24 tracks |
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Ace Records 2005 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Northern Soul's Classiest Rarities 3 |
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Ace Records 2008 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Northern Soul's Guilty Secrets The Northern Soul scene started over four decades ago and was never meant to be more than a passing fad. It just got so good we couldn’t bear to let go, or grow up. We still have an emotional attachment to records played by teenagers to teenagers an eon ago. The music was all brand new to us at that time and being brought up in a culture thousands of miles away from its source, we had to make it up as we went along. Knowledge was limited and we had no idea of the circumstances or origins of the recordings. For all we knew, Barnaby Bye could have come straight outta Philly’s black ghetto. Actually, we wouldn’t have cared had we known they had long hair and flares; the beat and sound was all. Dance records were what we wanted. They were usually based on the classic Motown sound, but we veered off up many a dark musical alley. Soul revisionism didn’t happen until the momentum and euphoria finally calmed down in the late 70s. I think all of the tracks on here were first played in the early 70s days of the scene (the Rumblers may have been a bit later) but hardly any of them have been played as oldies since. They’ve been airbrushed from our musical history. These are the ones we’ve removed from the DJ box, but left close to hand for that nostalgia trip. I can understand why more serious music fans look down on some of these tracks, but it really is their loss. Ann D’Andrea is so basic I thought they’d sent a demo take, but what an uplifting bouncy, catchy number it is. I recently had a discussion about David & the Giants with a serious soul fan, who claimed their record’s appeal was down to the Fame studio musicians and production. I’m sure that was him trying to justify his love of it. I think it’s the way the group captured the essence and exuberance of young love that makes it. That same goes for Kiki Dee’s ‘On A Magic Carpet Ride’. As a longhaired left-wing member of the Market Harborough underground in the late 60s, I couldn’t have pictured myself raving about a song featuring “rainbow’s end” lyrics in later years. John Fred’s ‘Hey Hey Bunny’ sounds like an early bubblegum record, but what fun and, if you’re a dancer, a great one to burn some energy off to. I beg you to get past the artists and titles that have repelled you for years and give this maligned side of Northern Soul an honest appraisal. If it gets one grumpy soul stalwart skipping across the kitchen to ‘Put Me In Your Pocket’ it’ll all have been worthwhile. By Ady Croasdell (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2011 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Old Town & Barry Soul Survey 26 biisiä |
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Ace Records 2005 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - On Vine Street - The Early Songs of Randy Newman 26 tracks |
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Ace Records 2008 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Original Up-Town Divas 18 tracks, 60 min Gladys Knight, Dusty Springfield, Dionne Warwick, Tina Turner, Tanya Tucker, Susan Anson.. |
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GMVS 2004 | DVD | 9.00 € |
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| VA: - Pass The Soul - 25 searing soul rockers 25 biisiä |
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CD | 19.00 € |
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| VA: - Phil Spector - The Early Productions In the early 60s, pop was a hidden industry whose interface with the public existed only at performance level. The big money wasn’t around then and the record game wasn’t seen as a legitimate vocation for sons and daughters. In this subterranean milieu, income depended on factors that were both difficult to predict and control and it seemed a safer bet becoming a lawyer, a doctor or a dentist. This was the awesome challenge facing 21 year-old Phil Spector as he barnstormed his way through recording circles, making an immediate impact with major hits such as ‘Spanish Harlem’ (Ben E King), ‘Pretty Little Angel Eyes’ (Curtis Lee) and ‘Corinna Corinna’ (Ray Peterson). It all began for Spector with the Teddy Bears, an ad hoc vocal group he organised as a vehicle for his songs back in 1958. Events had moved fairly quickly in his life since he’d moved with his mother and sister from the Bronx to Los Angeles in 1953. By the time he’d graduated from Fairfax high School in 1957, Spector had become proficient on the guitar and turned his hand to song writing. Some crudely recorded demos including ‘Don’t You Worry My Little Pet’ (heard here) caught the attention of Doré Records who sanctioned further recordings resulting in the worldwide hit ‘To Know Him Is To Love Him’. Riven by personality conflicts, the Teddy Bears soon disbanded and Spector teamed up with Lester Sill and Lee Hazlewood, the force behind twangy guitarist Duane Eddy’s hits. Placed in charge of Sill’s new signing Kell Osborne, Spector wrote and produced the gritty ‘That’s Alright Baby’. Spector then expressed a desire to move back East. As a favour to their old mentor, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller agreed to look after him. Alternating between coasts, Spector recorded the Paris Sisters, a vocal trio signed by Sill. His faith in Spector was more than justified when the trio’s ‘I Love How You Love Me’ climbed to #5. Following a short stop at Liberty records – the only official staff post he ever held – Spector walked away to concentrate on his own Philles label. Four years had lapsed since he’d stepped untrained into a recording studio with three friends to record a hit almost by chance. Since then, he’d learned his craft, paid his dues and finally become his own boss. Now, at 23, he had the industry in the palm of his hand and only himself to account to. “Phil Spector: The Early Productions” covers this formative phase of Spector’s career without duplicating too many hits available on other Ace comps. 12 of the generous 28 tunes are new to CD and both the sequencing and mastering make them a delight to the ear while the booklet is a presentational tour de force. Let’s remember him this way rather than the other. By Rob Finnis (Ace Records) |
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Ace Records 2010 | CD | 17.00 € |
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| VA: - Pounds Of Soul 24 biisiä vuosilta 1967-1975 |
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Ace Records 2003 | CD | 18.00 € |
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| VA: - Pulp Fiction |
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MCA Records 1994 | CD | 10.00 € |
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| VA: - Rare Blues & Soul From Nashville The 1960s Rare Blues & Soul From Nashville The 1960s With the exception of New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago, Nashville, Tennessee had more independent record companies than any other city in the United States during the boom years of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. This collection will help you to get an idea what it was like during the golden era of Nashville Blues and Soul Music. They just don't make records like this anymore, but thankfully we can still hear them...and they sure sound good. |
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Superbird Records 2009 | CD | 18.00 € |
